I'd like to ask you in what case you use the word something as countable?
I found a sentence in the book, BENEATH THE WHEEL（PICADOR),
as follows:
All these conscientious guites of youth - from the headmaster to Father Giebenrath, professors and tutors - regarded Hans as an impediment in their path, a recalcitrant and listless something which had to be compelled to move.
In the sentense above, the word something is used as countable with "a" . I seldom see this way of using that word. Could you tell me why the author put "a" to "something".
One more question: I think "something" usually takes adjectives after itself, but not before. In the above sentense, the word took its adjectives before it like " a recalcitrant and listless something". I wonder if there is something that judges which way you take to tell certain meanings concerning the word "something", putting adjective before or after the word?
Thanks in advance.
I found a sentence in the book, BENEATH THE WHEEL（PICADOR),
as follows:
All these conscientious guites of youth - from the headmaster to Father Giebenrath, professors and tutors - regarded Hans as an impediment in their path, a recalcitrant and listless something which had to be compelled to move.
In the sentense above, the word something is used as countable with "a" . I seldom see this way of using that word. Could you tell me why the author put "a" to "something".
One more question: I think "something" usually takes adjectives after itself, but not before. In the above sentense, the word took its adjectives before it like " a recalcitrant and listless something". I wonder if there is something that judges which way you take to tell certain meanings concerning the word "something", putting adjective before or after the word?
Thanks in advance.